Over more then a million people have been displaced as Typhoon Marakot hit the eastern coast of China. According to the latest estimates the Typhoon is expected to over 1.2 billion US$ in damages. The Typhoon made landfall at 16:20 hrs in the coastal town of Beibe in Xiapu county of Fujjan province. According to the latest reports the Typhoon created winds that clocked 118 kmph. The storm has impacted more then 1.5 million homes in Taiwan as they were out of power and some 440,000 were without water supply. According to reports one child died dude to a building collapse. The Typhoon caused a record 2.5 meters rainfall in Taiwan.

China has sounded a red alert of the highest degree and recalled all shipping vessels in the region. As the epicenter of the storm reached China, heavy rains lashed the costal province flooding more the 16,000 hectares of land area causing 300 homes to collapse. Typhoon Marakot has also caused flooding due to heavy rains in Philippines. It is reported that the heavy rains caused 10 deaths flooding and landslides.

Another storm hit the western coast of Japan killing 13 people. Typhoon Etau has caused landslides and flash floods in the island nation. The number of victims is expected to go up as heavy torrential rains continue in the region. As Typhoon Etau moves ahead, the Japanese capital Tokyo prepares for one of the strongest stormy of the century.

People in Asia got a rare opportunity to have a glimpse of the longest solar eclipse of the century, it was a mesmerizing opportunity eclipse chasers from across the globe. It was also a feast for armature observers as many did basic preparation to observe the spectacle. At its peak the eclipse lasted for six minutes and thirty nine seconds. The eclipse started over west India and move eastwards with the moons shadow falling over parts of east India, Nepal, Burma, Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Japan and the Pacific. The eclipse became a total eclipse over west India at 0053 hrs GMT and it was last visible over land at Nikumaroro Islands on the Pacific ocean where it ended at 0418 hrs GMT. Apart from the total eclipse a partial eclipse could be observed from most parts of Asia.

There ware some disappointments too, as thousands of people had gathered in Taregna, the epicenter of the eclipse, but monsoon clouds obscured the view. Some enthusiasts took eclipse chasing to a new level by using a chartered to get a perfect view from about the clouds. People in east china were also not that lucky as clouds obscured the view in many locations.

Many gathered at religious locations to have a dip in the holy waters as it is considered auspicious to observe the event while immersed in holly water. Many ghats of the river Ganges and also other holly locations like Brahma Sarovar in the holy city Kurakshetra.

Another unfortunate incident happened in Varanasi where two people died and many injured in a stamped on the banks of the river Ganges.

The eclipse also provides an opportunity to astronomers and astrophysicists to study and collect data on the gases surrounding the sun which is also knows as the sun’s corona. Eclipse also help us in studying solar flairs and other related events.

The next total solar eclipse will occur on 11 July, 2010 and would be visible from a narrow corridor in Argentina and Pacific Ocean.

Some say it is a bad omen, but astronomers wait for them. On 22nd July 2009, India will wake-up to an extended night, a night that can not be missed, and an opportunity of a life time. A total solar eclipse in India will last for 3 min and 44 seconds. The next total solar eclipse will happen in 13th June 2152. This is the longest solar eclipse of the century and is of a magnitude 1.080 and would be visible from a narrow corridor with passes through India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Mayanmar, China and then moves off land into Pacific Ocean. The shadow will be at it peak in the pacific where the eclipse will last for 6 minutes. The best spot to watch the eclipse in India are Surat and Taregana. The total solar eclipse will be visible in many large cities on the corridor that includes Surat, Vadodara, Bhopal, Varanasi, Patna, Dinajpur, Chengdu, Chongqing, Wuhan, Hefei, Hangzhou and Shanghai.

Kurakshetra is a holy city and pilgrims visit the city especially during eclipse to have a holly dip in the Brahma Sarovar and this time is expected to have 3 to 5 million visitors.

It is believed that a dip in the Brahma Sarovar during the solar eclipse washes one of all sins.

The notorious Al Qaeda  net headed by Osama bin Laden has engaged itself in the mission to even the scores for the atrocities handed out by Beijing to the minority Uighur Muslims who were attacked by  the Chinese workers in north-west Africa.

According to the South China Morning Post, there has been an alarming intelligence report based on the findings of a London-run risk assessment firm, the Stirling Assynt that quotes the Algerian wing of Al Qaeda , the Al Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb, also called AQIM, has sought reprisal for the injustice caused to China’s Muslim Uighurs.

The risk estimation done by Sterling Assynt has presaged a significant threat that should not be taken lightly. Though the AQIM is amongst the pioneers to take up the cause for Muslim Uighurs, there is a strong possibility that many others might follow suit.

The wide-ranging circumstances of the Uighur Muslims in China have reverberated amid the worldwide jihadist groups. There has been an escalation in bickering amongst the jihadist factions who want to set the records straight. Many of these entities have been trying to garner crucial information regarding China’s concern in matters relating to the Muslim community that would be utilised in future to mark them out.

A moderate 6.0 magnitude quake on the Richter scale struck the scenic hilly Yunnan province in China at 11:19 GMT on Thursday at a 10 kilometres depth.

The quake has claimed one life with hundreds being injured and razing to the ground 18,000 and above homes in south-west China. Massive evacuation of more than 4,00,000 people was undertaken  by thousands of soldiers and police personnel, with necessary supplies like marquee, blankets amongst other provisions being made available.

More than 75,000 houses have faced severe damage in six districts of Yunnan with nearly 30 people afflicted with grave injuries. In the Yao’an district of Yunnan, close to 328 are injured with one dead.

The epicentre of the quake was on a region that has a rather sparse populace in the east-northeast area of Dali city than spans 98kms. There were eight post-tremors that ensued creating utter chaos amongst the residents who rushed outside to avert any major harm.

The governor of Yunnan, Qin Guangrong has bailed out 2.9 million dollars towards calamity assistance. The assessment of the mass destruction is reported to cause a dent of 2.5 billion yuan to the local economy.

A huge 8.0 scale quake struck Sichuan province last year had claimed the lives of 87,000 people, many of whom went missing.

The meet at Italy’s L’AQUILA by the G8 nations besides the Major Economies Forum having 17 members, who account for nearly 80 % of global emissions, has failed to set a target to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to half by the year 2050. A reference in the draft document to limit the world temperature rise to 2 degree Celsius or 3.6 degree Fahrenheit above pre-industrial levels would have forced deep cuts in worldwide emissions.

Alden Meyer of the Union of Concerned Scientists said “They are running out of time towards Copenhagen” as over 190 countries are to agree on a United Nations climate pact in Copenhagen, Denmark.

He also said “It’s a progress to set a goal based on science, but a missed opportunity if they don’t set clear 2050 and 2020 targets about how to reach that goal.”

Tobias Muenchmeyer of environmental group Greenpeace said “If this is now the result of the G8 talks, that would be really shocking,” G8 nations need to set tough 2020 goals for themselves and promise finance for developing states.

The G8 summit was thought by many as a chance to break the deadlock over curbing greenhouse gases in what could be a blueprint for the United Nations treaty. But on Tuesday, India & China blocked the call by G8 to sign a goal of halving world greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. An overnight text omits any reference to that target.

Kim Carstensen, head of the global climate initiative of the WWF International environmental group said “It is disappointing that they haven’t come further”.

Even the last hopes of making this forum move forward were lost after the departure of Chinese Head of State Hu Jintao, who had to return to Beijing due to unrest in North West region of China where 156 people have been killed.

The developing nations have said that the G8 countries must first set new goals for themselves which are to be far steeper and net to be met by 2020 and agree billions of dollars in funds to help the world move to renewable energy and cope with frequent droughts, floods, heat waves and rising sea levels. Refusing to set a 2050 goal the developing nations may want to keep back a bargaining chip before Copenhagen.

The G8 has promised to cut emissions that total about 10-14 percent below 1990 levels falling short of “at least 40 %” as demanded by the developing world. A U.N. panel of scientists has also outlined cuts of 25-40 % below 1990 levels by 2020 to avoid the worst of global warming by developed nations, with the developing world making a “significant deviation” below the projected rise in emissions.

These cuts by 2020 are consistent with the 2C goal. Carstensen said “If they take that 2 Celsius goal seriously, developed countries will have to deliver much more ambitious mid-term targets, and developing nations will have to start to act more”.

A novel means to allot accountability for carbon emission is said to resolve the standoff between countries that are budding and the developed ones. The mode places nationwide goals for curbing carbon emissions on the basis of the theory that states that the figure of high bracket income earners in a country is directly proportional to the rate of CO2 emission.

Research scholars from Princeton Environmental Institute commenced work on the module two years back with their prime goal being to uncover a steadfast means to assess the typical emission rate of high wage earners. It was concluded from nationwide statistics bureaus and World Bank that with every ten percent hike in income, the corresponding rise in emissions by that particular person went up by nearly close to ten percent.

Countries like Japan are twofold competent in this aspect in comparison to the US. Progressive countries have always received flack in complying with cutting carbon emissions without any concrete assurance from developing countries in this regard. The developed nations are of the viewpoint that developing countries should also take charge of the situation concerned, given the fact that they mass-generate them in the initial instance.

On the 1990 plane by 2020, currently developed countries like Scotland have laid down a determined deduction goal of 42 percent in carbon emissions surpassing many countries, while UK has consented to un-joint reduction of 34 percent and the European Union has allocated a cut of 20 percent evaluated to that same year itself.

The novel method plans to assign reduction on a descending range with reference to wealth as the base. With third world countries becoming slowly affluent, their contribution to carbon cuts will also rise eventually, when in due course they decide to reduce emissions, they would own the sources to be able to accomplish the said task. With the rapid growth rate of developing countries one can expect within the next two to three decades, they will produce significantly high rate of carbon emissions.

China, in fact, doesn’t have alarming high carbon emissions that gives it a lax period of a decade or so, ensuing which it will need to take stringent measures. The state of affairs presumes that global action to curb carbon emissions will commence from the year 2010 which by the year 2030 will have the same carbon emissions as the current scenario.

Countries like Russia, U.S, Canada, Australia, and Middle East need to put in considerable effort in curbing carbon emissions.

In December, as leaders from all nations congregate in Copenhagen to create an agreement that will substitute the Kyoto agreement that nullifies in 2012, how far the impact of the plan charted in the Princeton documents will be followed is to be watched out for.